Week 9 Story: How the Boys Learned to Shoot

Two young boys were out playing basketball in their front yard on a bright and sunny day. One of the boys, Alex, shot the ball up, but it got stuck between the rim and the backboard. Oh no! They were too short to reach it, and had no way of getting it down. Suddenly, a tall man wearing a #24 Laker’s jersey appeared, and saw the boys’ problem. He walked up to the basketball hoop, and used his long arms to grab the ball from the rim. He handed the ball back to Alex and Jack, smiling to them. The boys ran inside and told their dad of the giant basketball player outside. When their dad came out, he immediately recognized the man as Kobe Bryant.

            Kobe explained to the three that he wished to train the boys so that they may help him win a bet against one of his old friends, Shaq. Shaq had challenged Kobe, saying that he could find and train two kids to beat Kobe in a 3-on-3 basketball game. Kobe accepted the challenge, and was now looking for two kids to train and become his teammates for the challenge. Their dad agreed to let Kobe train Alex and Jack, and so they began their training.

            Every day for the next month, Kobe would come over and shoot hoops with the boys. Each day, they got better and better, becoming a better ball handler, rebounder, assister, and shooter. Alex especially became good, and Kobe could tell he was special. 

            A week before the game between Team Shaq and Team Kobe, Alex and Jack’s older brother, Elijah, came out to see what was going on. Astonished to see Kobe, he immediately wanted to be a part of the team, and begged to join. When Kobe told him that he had specifically chosen his two younger brothers, Elijah became furious and jealous of them. He vowed to seek revenge and would force Kobe to accept him. So he went to the gym, where he trained night and day, becoming a good 3-point shooter. When he returned, he shot seven 3’s in a row in front of Kobe, demanding he let him on his team. Kobe agreed, but said that he must make a sacrifice to show he is one of his pupil’s. He demanded Elijah to sacrifice his shooting sleeve, and by doing so, he could not shoot any more 3’s. Elijah retreated to the house in defeat.

            Finally, the day of the game came, and Kobe, Alex, and Jack met Team Shaq at a nearby basketball court. Shaq was surprised to see such a talented pair of young boys on Kobe’s team, watching them dish and dunk all over his two recruits. Even Kobe himself was spectacular, dominating the court over Shaq. The game was tied, with only 10 seconds left. Kobe passed the ball to Alex, and he shot it from the 3-point line. As it released from his finger-tips, the game clock rang, and it seemed like an eternity before the ball finally swooshed through the basket. Kobe smiled, and knew Alex was going to one day become a great professional basketball player. Finally, the game came to an end, and Team Kobe had won. Team Shaq was defeated, and Kobe had won the bet, with the help of Alex and Jack.

            

            Kobe walked up to the two boys and smiled at them. “Thank you for both of your help. I’m proud of what you’ve done. As for you, Alex Caruso, you will one day do great things in the NBA. When that day comes, know I’ll be watching you, and cheering you on, for I am now in your debt.”

Shooting

Bibliography

Using the story from the Mahabharata, How the Princes Learned to Shoot by Sister Nivedita, I transformed a serious story about two boys learning to become warriors into two boys learning to play basketball. “Shooting” in the original story refers to the boys learning to shoot a bow, while my story interprets it as being able to shoot a basketball. In honor of Kobe Bryant, I decided to use him in place of Drona, the brahmin that teaches Arjuna and the other boys. Drupada is replaced with Shaq, for a comedic affect. Ekalayva is replaced with Elijah, as the boy who loses his ability to “shoot” when he gives a sacrifice to Drona/Kobe. Lastly, I decided to replace Arjuna with Alex Caruso, as a surprise at the end, for another comedic affect, especially since Alex Caruso now plays on the Laker’s, the same team Kobe Bryant played for during his time in the NBA.